"San Jose is his city and the Sharks are his team," former teammate Joe Pavelski said in his first public appearance at the Shark Tank since retiring last season in Dallas. Thornton played 1,714 regular-season games over his career, recording 1,109 assists ...

Celebrini is probably a little way off before he starts to wear a letter for the Sharks, but it seems to be a safe bet that he’ll be the team’s captain one day. When that happens, he’ll have to start to take charge of the room, holding guys accountable while also making sure the team’s culture is where it needs to be – just like Thornton did.

Thornton joins longtime teammate Patrick Marleau as the only players to have their jerseys retired by the Sharks. It’s fitting that they are side by side as the entered the NHL as the top two picks in the 1997 draft and spent 13 seasons together in San Jose.